Gun-stock.



L. F. KENNEDY.

GUN STOCK.

APPucATmN flLED ocT.1o,1s14y. aENEwED Aue. 29. 1917.

l ,266,024. Patented May 14, 1918.

1 y 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

r-u'l 715/7765566.- /370677 for.'

' awrefvce-enrfedy FFCE LAWRENCE F. KENNEDY, 0F ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

GUN WSTOCK.

Specication of Letters Patent.

lEBatented May 14, 1918.

Application filed October 10, 1914, Serial No. 866,067. Renewed August29, 1917. Serial No. 188,872.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, LAWRENCE F. Kniv- NEDY, a citizen of the UnitedStates, resid- VYing at St. Paul, in the county V fRan1sey and State ofMinnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gun-Stocks, of which the following is a specication.`

My invention relates to gun-stocks and has for its object to provide agun havin a telescopic sight and a resilient recoil pa with means'permitting the housing of said telescopic sight within the gun-stockwhen not in use.

For high-powered riiies such as are used by armies and for otherpurposes both a telescopic sight and a recoil pad are requisite, theformer to enable the shooter to see the target at a great distance so asto properly direct4 the fire of the gun; the other to receive the impactof the severe recoil which accompanies the shooting of such ahighpowered rifle to protect the shoulder from serious injury. It isimpractical and unsatisfactory to have the telescopic sight continuallymounted upon the rifle, both because of the inconvenience entailed andbecause of the liability of injuring the telescope and rendering thesame ineiiective. Also, recoil pads as heretofore employed havecompletely sealed the butt end of the gun-stock making it impossible tohouse the telescope within the butt of the gun. It is the object of myinvention to provide a true telescoping spy-glass for sighting purposeswhich, when in use, canbe accurately adj usted for the longest ranges,but which may be removed from its operative position and closed up intoa comparatively small bundle which may be housed within an opening inthe gun-stock and to provide a recoil pad in combination with saidhousing for the telescope, which, while eii'ective to completely coverthe butt end of the gun-stock, will, nevertheless, permit convenientaccess to said housing. It is also an object of my invention to providea recoil pad member having such a mounting that the same may readily besubstituted for the butt plate ordinarily applied to the end of a riflestock without the necessity of any modification of the rifie stock.

The full objects and advantages of my in- 4'vention will appear inconnection with the detailed description Vthereof and are particularlypointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, illustrating the application of my invention in oneform,-

Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of a rifle having my improvementsconnected therewith and showing the telescopic sight in operativeposition. Fi 2 is a side sectional View of a portion o a gun-stockhaving my improvements connected therewith and showing the telescopeclosed up and housed within the gun-stock. Fig. 3 is .a fragmentarysectional view of the end of the gun-stock showing the recoil pad inposition for permitting access to the telescope housing. Fig. 4 is aview of the reverse side of the butt to that shown in Fig. 1 with therecoil pad in closed position. Figs. 5 and 6 are transverse sectionalviews of the end of the gun-stock showin the recoil pad member in openand close position, respectively.

As illustrated, the stock 10 of the rifle may be provided with aplurality of longitudinal cavities or housings 1.1.' and 12,respectively, which housings open through the end of the stock, asindicated at 13 in Figs. 3, 5 and 6. A spy-glass 14 for sightingpurposes, comprising a series of telescoping sections, is shown in Fi 1mounted in operative position upon-a justable rests 15 and 16. In Fig. 2the spy-glass 14 is shown in closed condition within the housing 11. Therecoil pad member comprises a butt plate 17 which has a flange member18, said butt plate being secured to the gun-stock by a screw 19extending through the butt plate proper and another screw 20 extendingthrou h the flange 18. The butt plate is provided with a pair ofcircular apertures 21 and 22 above the openings 13 from cavities 11 and12. The openings 21 and 22 are closed by a swinging gate 23 havingexpanded portions 24 and 25 which exactly fit within said o enings. Saidgate is hinged at 26 to the p ate 17, having a squared head 27 by which,through the action of a spring 28, the gate 23 is held in open or closedposition. A tongue 29 on the gate 23 extends slightly beyond the end ofthe iiange portion 18, by which means the gate is readily opened.

The recoil member also comprises a Wooden piece 30 hollowed out, asindicated at 31. The piece 30 has connected thereto a binge plate 32which has thereon lugs 33 coperating with a hinge extension 34 on plate17, so that by means of a pin 35 the piece 30 is hingedly connected tothe butt plate 17 so roo 'as to swing open sideWise along the saine,beingheld in open position, as indicated in' Fig. 5, lby the lugs 33 andpin 35, and when closed having said lugs flush with the slde of .thegun-stock, as best shown in Figs. 4.y

and 6. A catch .36 is adapted to take under the ledge `of plate 17 in acavity 37 inthe through the Wall of piece 30, thespring 33 outline ofthe gun-stock so as `to completelyv tic'ally ,the rle is shot there isadded, therefore, to

being secured to the inner Wall of said piece 30 Within the cavity 31.VSecurely cemented to the piece 30 so as to have the Walls thereof fiushyWith the outer edges of said piece, which Walls are shaped to continuethe close the openingfl, is a resilient pad 41, which may be made of anydesired resilient material, a somewhat soft and spongy rubber beingeffective for the purpose. If desired, this pad may be partially cut outor thinned above the opening31 in the piece 30,.as indicated at 42 inFig. 6.

The operation of my invention will be apparent. When it is desired touse the telescopic sight, the recoil pad member 30 is swung open on itsside hinge and the gate 23 is lifted, as indicated in Fig. 3. The closedtelescope 14 is then Withdrawn from the housing 11 and secured inoperative position to the rifle, as indicated in Fig. 1, the gate 29 andmember 30 being closed in the position indicated in Figs. 1, 2 and 4.The

piece 30 makes a closed contact with the sur` face of the plate l17 sothat When the same is in closed position the chamber 31 is pracsealedfrom the outside air.

the natural resiliency 'of the pad 41 the cushioning effect of theimprisoned air in the chamber 31, Whichg has the result of effectuallyabsorbing the shock of the recoil so that practicallynone .of 'suchshock is transmitted to thel shoulder of the shooter.

'When the use of the telescopic sight is no longer necessary, eitherbecause the gun is not being shot,'or because the range is not great.enough to require it, the telescope 14 maybe quickly removedy and closedup and inserted Within the housing 11, the members 30 and 29 beingreadily raised ,for that purpose. Both of these members can' be openedWhen 4 and closed by a. gloved or mittened hand, it l being onlynecessary to engage the button 39 and the tongue 29 for that purpose.The cavity or housing 12`may be employed for the reception ofy a` thong'case and oiler, which, of course, may be Withdrawn andreturned With thesamefacility as the telescope14.

I' claim; y

1.`In combination WithF a gun having a chamber in the stock openingthrough the lbutt end thereof, a metallic butt Vplate se-l cured to theend of said stock and having a gate opening into said chamber, a recoilabsorbing member, and means securing said:

member to the butt plate in such 'manner that the member may be removedfrom in front of the gate to permit opening thereof.

2. In combination with a' gun having a- I chamber in the stock openingthrough the butt end thereof, a metallic butt plate secured to the endof said stock and having la gate opening into said chamber, and a recoili absorbing member including a resilient recoil pad hingedly connectedto said metallic plate. a f i 3. 1n combination with a gun having yachamber in the stockopening through the butt end thereof, a metallicbutt plate'securedto-the end of said. stock and having a gate openinginto said chamber, aYrecoil-.absorbingmember including a resilientrecoil pad connected by means of inset hinges With said metallic plate,and means for locking said recoil member in closed position to form abutt-end continuation of the gun-stock.

4. In'combination with a gun having a chamber in the stock openingthrough the butt end thereof, a metallic butt plate secured to the endof said stock and having a gate opening into said chamber, a recoilabsorbing member comprising a Wooden piece shaped to forma continuationof the gunstock and hingedly connected with said metal plate, and aresilient pad secured to said piece and forming the butt end of the n.ln'testimony whereof I aiix my signature in presence of tWo Witnesses.

LAWRENCE-r, KENNEDY.

leo,

